George Kittle wasn’t present at 49ers practice on Wednesday. Kittle entered the season with a lengthy injury history and a High Injury Risk according to our algorithm. Now he’s already dealing with a problem with his groin. The 49ers either don’t know yet or won’t admit how significant it is, but starting off the week with a DNP is a concern.
Let’s quickly run through some of Kittle most concerning injuries:
2017 – Hamstring strain, ankle sprain
2018 – AC sprain
2019 – Knee sprain
2020 – Hamstring strain, MCL sprain, foot fracture
2021 – calf strain
While the groin is a new injury, he does have a concerning history of soft tissue injuries to his lower body, including recent calf and hamstring strains. When healthy Kittle is a clear top 3 tight end in the league, but injuries have long been a problem. Kittle missed three games in 2021 with that calf strains, and in 2020 he played just 8 games. He has proven a few different times that he can play through injuries and still perform at a fairly high level. It’s possible he does that again, but starting off the year like this isn’t a good thing. These muscular strains are highly recurrent, so Kittle is someone we will need to keep a close eye on throughout the year.
If Kittle is on your season-long fantasy roster and is active he comes with enough upside at a thin position that you have to start him. Stay far, far away in DFS lineups this weekend.
